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Zimmerman Found Not Guilty

Today on Power Talk with Lorraine, Lorraine and callers reacted to the outcome of the George Zimmerman trial. A verdict was reached, and Zimmerman was found not

guilty of second-degree murder and manslaughter. The jurors–all women and mostly white–believed that Zimmerman acted out of self-defense. He had his back against the wall, so to speak, and had nothing left to do but to use deadly force.

photo by Getty Images

To describe this trial as a “heated” one is generally accurate. Between gun laws and racial profiling, this case was continuously a hotbed of issues. There were threats of riots if citizens were to feel that justice was not served. A non-violence PSA was even released in preparation for Zimmerman’s verdict–if it were presented as not guilty. And, the verdict emerged as not guilty. So did rioting occur? The majority of the nation demonstrated peacefully with marches and rallies (such as here in Atlanta, GA depicted below), but the most notable occurrence of violence was in Oakland, CA, where citizens burned American flags and committed vandalism (depicted above). Overall, it seems that the protest will remain peaceful.

The countless protests across the country display the shared feelings of injustice, despite the court ruling. So was justice served or do you feel Zimmerman did not receive proper punishment? What can be done to prevent another circumstance such as this?